O Saga: Part One: Book of Origins

Malum can no longer lie on the pile of straw he calls a bed. His nightmares kept him awake for most of the night, and the straw did the rest. The sunbeams have yet to find their way around the mountain peaks. He still has a little time to enjoy the morning before heading to work at the mine.

Last night’s dream flickers in Malum’s mind as he lights a fire. Every night, he’s plagued with visions of what might be. Malum doesn’t like to think about the future as it brings only thoughts of pain and violence.

In the night, he wakes up in a panic as the events in his mind feel all too real. He feels nauseous and disoriented as thoughts linger at the end of every restless night. He senses that these visions will come true. He has reason to believe they might come true, as it’s happened before.

It is a cold start to the morning. Malum notices a fresh layer of snow on the pines. Malum reached to slip on his boots, threw on a coat, and put on his gloves.

The winter air smells crisp and clean even though it sits slightly heavier in your chest. The crunch of the fresh snow as he steps with heavy boots is loud and a bit slippery. The wind cuts through his ragged clothing and sends chills up his body. He hears crows making a fuss in nearby spruce trees.

He throws back the cover on the wood pile and grabs a couple of logs. Malum’s gloves have holes from excessive wear, and his fingers practically freeze to the wood as he carries the wood back to the house.

Malum’s family home is mostly wood, straw, and mud. Most buildings on the mountain slope are in some disrepair. The drafty buildings leak when it rains and barely keep the heat in on cold days. The village deserved condemnation long ago if anyone had ever bothered to travel here.

The twisty mountain trails are always full of mud and muck. There can be thieves and desperate people pillaging wander souls. The effort to reach the village was hardly worth the meager reward. It’s like a prison; everyone is trying to get out, not in.

There is no jail or bars to hold you. The mines take everything from you, and life is usually short-lived. The people are as chaotic as the buildings.

Malum figures he should make his Father and brother breakfast before they wake. They’ll make him do it either way. A bit of leftover sausage from last night will do. Malum thinks to himself, trying to remember what kind of meat it was again. Rabbit, he thought? You had to make whatever you caught last.

They kept some chickens in a coup, and he thought about grabbing some eggs if there were any. He should at least feed them as he knew nobody else would.

Malum seems to be constantly trying to get others’ approval. That happens when everyone around you treats you like a freak, lower than the dirt they mine.

Malum is good-hearted despite others’ cruelty. He always tries to help others in need. He has nothing to give, but that doesn’t stop his kind heart.

Malum has given food to a starving child, even though it means he will eat nothing. He gave his only blanket to an older woman shaking in freezing conditions. For that, his Father gave him a lashing.

The village he lives in, Jyoti, is a mining town. They dig into the mountain shaft, looking for any resource. Metals like copper and iron are the most common ores they find.

The wealth and materials are all sent to the Ishvaran capital city of Dhara. Malum had never seen Dhara and had yet to learn what it might look like. Malum had been at most ten or fifteen miles from his home.

Malum is seventeen, but he looks thirty. The mine had a way of sucking the life out of your spirit and leaving a hollow shell. There was no life in the eyes of anyone. The village had died years ago; just nobody had noticed. As they dig in the mines daily, it might as well be their graves.

The heavy labor forged Malum’s body. Tall and lean-muscled, he was not afraid of getting his hands dirty. Hiding somewhere beneath the grime hid his handsome features. He had unkempt, long, curly brown hair and soft brown eyes. Malum had long outgrown his tattered clothes and shoes.

The materials they mine are sent downriver to the coast and eventually out to sea to ports around Ishvara. Some try to steal bits here and there to sell to black markets, but somehow, the taskmasters find out. The punishment is usually death, but too many, that isn’t risking much.

The Foreman, Nalan, runs the mine, but a Boyar from the capitol owns it. The Boyar is said to live in the coastal city of Mayra. Malum has never seen him, so it is just a rumor as far as he’s concerned. The Boyar keeps soldiers at the mine to keep a watchful eye on the locals—one way to stop thieves.

Malum’s Father, Udai, was the first to wake up and join him. Malum brought him a warm drink and some of his ready food. Udai didn’t say anything to him. Udai doesn’t say much to Malum if he can help it. He usually only gave him hate-filled looks of disapproval. Even in his own home, Malum was an outcast.

Udai was a short, wiry man with a constant scowl in his expression. He had long, gray curly hair and a scraggly beard. His brown eyes carried no sentimentality to them. Life had been an experience of pain for him, and he wasn’t going to let you forget it.

Malum’s mother, Hine, died giving birth to him. All his life, his Father has blamed him for her death. Malum is just one of the scapegoats for his Father’s misery. Malum would give anything for his Father’s approval.

When Udai isn’t at work, he is nursing a fermented drink or three. Malum can never make mistakes with Udai; they’ve always led to beatings. It is one of the things that gives pleasure to his Father.

The whole of the village thinks a demon possesses him. His Father has often told him he might sell him to The Witches. Malum doesn’t believe such people exist. It’s just some weird threat his Father makes when he gets drunk.

Malum has special powers, powers he doesn’t even understand. His Father thinks these powers led to his mother’s death. Malum doesn’t know, and he could be right. Strange things have happened to him throughout his life that scared others and himself.

Malum would move things with his mind or see things before they happened. They never happened by his intent; it was always involuntary.

Malum doesn’t know anything about why he has powers. He wonders to himself most days if a demon possesses him, even contemplating suicide on occasion.

No one escapes this place once they arrive. Soul-crushing poverty, rampant depression, and general fatalistic views on life keep the people uninspired for change. People hardly fear the frequent cave-ins while they work. Nor do they worry about the toxic gasses they breathe pretty regularly. To some, they are hoping to find death.

There is still an abundance of wildlife in the mountains. They aren’t supposed to hunt without permission; it’s just another way they try to control everyone. The soldiers seem to look the other way; they might take a share of the spoils for themselves as the price for their silence.

Malum’s older brother Kai finally joined them for breakfast. Malum was taller than his brother. Kai took after his Father in many respects. At that age, he was almost a spitting image of Udai, or at least that’s what people say. Kai would often bully and mistreat Malum when their Father was around but would apologize later. Kai could be relatively kind to Malum when no one was looking.

Kai had always been his Father’s favorite. Malum did the chores, but they were always optional for Kai. When Malum got the lash, Kai received praise. Kai has good standing amongst the other miners, whereas Malum is considered an outcast. Sometimes, Malum would let it get to him, but it usually made things worse.

Malum would only eat after his Father and brother had finished. Many times, very little would be left, if anything at all. He’d have to go out into the woods in desperation. Malum could find himself eating a bit of snow or chewing on pine needles to get some flavoring in his mouth.

Malum’s Father noticed something hanging out of Kai’s pocket and must have thought it suspicious.

“What do you have in your pocket?” Udai interrogated.

Kai’s eyes shifted to glance towards the object quickly and then tried to act as if it was something of insignificance. Udai didn’t deter so easily. Udai sat up in his chair and stiffened his gaze at Kai.

“That better not be more revolution propaganda you’ve been reading. I told you what would happen if you continued that. Hand it over.”

Kai swallowed hard and reached for the piece of paper in his pocket. Malum was cleaning up, trying not to get drawn in. Kai handed the parchment to his Father. Udai couldn’t read, so he called for Malum to read it. Malum did as asked.

“Are you sick and tired of the Aristocrats getting all the benefit from your hard labor?” Was all Malum had to read to confirm what his Father suspected. Udai made a gesture that signaled to Malum to stop.

“You will burn that and never again associate with this notion of revolution. If you bring this into the house, I’ll beat you so hard that it will take months to recover. Soldiers are looking for people spreading this rubbish. They’d arrest everyone in this house or kill us on the spot. This is your last warning.” Udai seemed content that he had spoken his peace and finished the discussion.

Kai gritted his teeth and lowered his head, “Ok, as you wish, Father.”

Malum sensed Kai’s heart still stirred with the revolution. It was one of the few occasions where he felt his Father was right. Malum felt a sense of dread about his Kai’s future. He loved his brother.

———-

Very few people owned horses in Jyoti—the only way to get anywhere was on your own two feet. A few lucky people had claimed a mule, but even that was a rarity. It took solid legs and stamina to climb these trails daily—those who physically couldn’t didn’t last very long.

People kept sheep and chickens for food and clothing. Beasts of burden were either too expensive or impractical. So, the people of Jyoti were well accustomed to hard labor.

Malum and Udai left a little earlier than his brother to head to the mine for work. Udai had a ritual of visiting the grave mound of Malum’s mother every morning. His Father would kneel before the flowery mound and say a prayer. The grave mound stayed covered in Lan’ ii flowers, blooming all year.

The flowers symbolized infinity, and the Angels planted them in the eternal gardens of heaven. Isashua ruled on high in this heaven as the One True God. The spirits of the ancestors joined the stars in the night sky to look over their loved ones. Others believed that hokum, but not Malum.

Malum wasn’t allowed to come close to the mound, so when Udai stumbled and got back to his feet, Malum moved forward to catch him; Udai turned red angrily.

“Don’t you come near her! Get your hands off of me!” Udai spat at him and shoved him away. Tears were forming in his Father’s eyes. “You put her here. You killed her with your demon magic, you swine.”

It was clear to Malum that his Father hadn’t changed his mind about who was to blame. Malum let go of his Father and walked away.

With no alternative ever put forward, Malum believed what his Father said to be true. The guilt weighed heavy on his soul. Malum tried hiding his tears as he walked on the muddy trails.

Kai was coming up the trail to catch up to them. Malum didn’t know if Kai noticed his tears. If he did, he was ignoring them.

————-

To Malum’s dismay, Lalit and Sajna were already waiting at the mine. They had been bullying Malum since he was little. Malum consoled himself, believing that these two feared his power deep down. They needed to chop him down to build themselves up. Lalit and Sajna’s lives weren’t as if they were flowers and sunshine.

Malum had fought back once when he was young but had been scared to do so since. It wasn’t because he got beaten up; it was quite the opposite.

When he was still young, a boy named Yanlir started to pick a fight with him. Malum had accidentally tapped into his powers and seriously wounded the boy. Malum was labeled a freak ever since. He never fought back again, fearing what he was capable of.

The mine was about three-quarters up the mountain slope next to Lake Brunner. The Lake was the mouth of the Pohaku River, which emptied into the sea. Raftman took cargo downstream to the city of Mayra.

In the port city of Mayra, merchant vessels would take the cargo to worldwide ports for trade.

All the miners entered the same entrance and then went to separate tunnels. You only had oil lamps and candles to see your way in the suffocating blackness of the mine.

“Morning, freak.” Lalit greeted Malum. Malum ignored it. “I said morning freak,” Lalit said even louder and more angrily.

Malum turned to him, thought better of it, and then kept walking. Lalit shoved him to the ground, “When I talk to you, you listen.” Malum didn’t respond and just sat on the cold ground.

Lalit was tall and stout. He had permanent stubble on his angry face. Lalit was a robust and loud-mouthed person that most people pretended to like out of fear.

Sajna was lanky and spineless. Sajna mostly just repeated what Lalit did. Malum saw a big smile on Sajna’s face as he moved toward him on the ground. Malum got bailed out this time as the Foreman yelled at everyone to get to work. The Foreman, Nalan, wasn’t defending Malum; he just needed to start the work day.

Malum stood up and dusted himself off. He put his head down and tried to catch up with his brother, who was grabbing some equipment. Malum’s Father and brother headed down into the mine without him. He wouldn’t see them until the workday was over.

Malum waited until last to grab whatever equipment was left. The most dangerous jobs were left for him to do.

It always felt like the mountain was swallowing him whole as he moved deep into the mountain to be digested by darkness. The Foreman would bring him torches and candles out of the preview of the others.

He heard their conversations as he walked the tunnels to get past the other workers.

“Did you hear the Tsar is giving free land in the North? You can mine or farm anywhere you want. That’s what I heard.” A worker said excitedly. Malum didn’t know if what he was saying was true.

Malum didn’t allow himself to dream like the others. He kept his feet in reality. Unfortunately, his feet were covered in debris at the moment.

Malum couldn’t help but feel something was wrong with the mountain today. He thought he should say something to someone but knew that would only end up in pain or ridicule. He wished he could have a sharper focus on these abilities to make a difference. Then maybe they’d see that the abilities aren’t a curse but a blessing. That’s just a silly idea floating in the darkness down here.

Malum sees a light source moving toward him, and the Foreman, Nalan, reveals himself. He is probably just checking to see if he’s alive; no one else would. Either that or he has a different project for him.

“When was the last time anyone braced this part of the tunnel?” He asked Malum.

“I’ve put up some today, but I’ve run out of wood. I’ve been asking for more for a couple of days.”

“I’ll send someone own with some supplies.

“Sir, do you feel that?” Malum asks as a feeling comes over him again.

“Feel what?” Nalan looked confused, but it was hard to see anything. “I’ll have some bracing brought down to you,” Nalan said, taking off before he could tell him what he was sensing.

Malum took a pick axe and started working on a random area. It didn’t take long for him to uncover something he had never seen before. He didn’t think it was anything special at first, but he picked it up to examine it.

It was a brownish-amber color. Malum thought it was a gem, possibly, but not a very valuable one. He was about to throw it when he felt something strange.

It was as if he could feel something connected between himself and this strange rock. But that would be insanity, he thought. The feeling persisted. Malum almost felt drunk on this new sensation. He felt powerful like he could lift the mountain suddenly.

Malum heard some noises echoing in his part of the tunnel. He saw that it was Lalit, and Sajna brought him the supplies. He quickly put the rock on the ground.

“Well, if it isn’t the freak,” Lalit said to Sajna. They threw the supplies down on the ground and surrounded Malum. “Guess it would be a shame if the tunnel collapsed and crushed you. Maybe we’ll do everyone a favor and bury you down here ourselves.”

Malum wasn’t engaging in any of their threats. The feeling he’d been having all day was drawing his attention more than these thugs were.

“I think we need to get out of this section,” Malum said to them quietly as it felt like the blood was rushing out of his body. He knew something terrible was about to happen.

“Are you getting scared in the dark? Afraid we’re going to hurt you too badly? You’re always the coward,” Lalit mocked. Sajna grabbed Malum from behind and held him so he could hardly move.

Lalit looked at the strange rock and asked, “What’s that you found? A gem?”

“Nothing that concerns you,” Malum said, feeling the anger overtake him.

“Looks kind of shiny; I think we should have a look.” Lalit sneered. He was about to reach the rock when they heard an unsettling noise. It even caused Lalit to pause. A tremor ran through the mountain, and dust flew up everywhere. The dust got instantly in their eyes and mouths.

Sajna released Malum to wipe his eyes, and Lalit was coughing. Someone yelled down their tunnel, “Get out; there might be a cave-in. Come on, get out of there.”

The two bullies started to run, and Malum quickly followed them after picking up the strange rock. It didn’t take long to run into others trying to flee. They were in some of the deepest tunnels in the back of the line to get out. Malum was the very last person, but he wasn’t rushing. He was looking around to make sure no one was left behind. He helped an older man who had tripped get up.

Malum used his torch to check every tunnel as he passed by. He would help someone find their way to the main tunnel on occasion. He was worried someone would get left behind. Somehow, he could catch up with the back of the line.

He was surprised to see Lalit and Sajna mixed in with the others. He wouldn’t have been surprised if they pushed their way through, but they hadn’t. The line was moving steadily enough. Malum kept looking back to check if anyone was there. Then that strange feeling was back.

A rumbling ripped through the mountain like a giant belch from the depths. They all stagger a bit, and Lalit falls backward toward a wall. A large part of the ceiling tore loose above where Lalit was. Out of pure instinct, Malum reached into his pocket for the strange rock he found and stretched out his hand. Somehow, Malum caught the debris as it floated above Lalit. He could feel the debris in his mind, and the weight of it was testing him physically in ways he had never known. Lalit looked up in amazement, as did the small crowd in line. He tried to move the debris to the side, but another rumble made him stumble. He lost control of the debris, and it smashed into Lalit.

Lalit was not visible under the pile of rock and dirt. A couple of men went over to dig him out and managed to move the debris enough to slide Lalit’s lifeless body out. People were running out, and two men carried Lalit. It quickly became chaotic.

Malum made it out, but he saw people staring at him with strange faces. Lalit was rushed off to get medical attention. Malum never liked Lalit, but he felt sympathetic towards his family. He hoped he was all right.

“Hey Malum, Nalan wants to see you.” Someone grunted.

When Malum reached Nalan’s office, he saw his Father in the window. He also some of the people who were at the back of the line with him. Soldiers were all standing nearby.

“These men have accused you of murdering Lalit.” Nalan jabbed with accusing words as Malum walked in.

“No, I did everything to save him. Didn’t you guys see me trying to hold the debris?” Malum pleaded in disbelief.

“We saw you rip the loose debris and then mockingly dangle it over before crushing him.” Old man Joham accused.

“No, I caught the debris and couldn’t hold it any longer; surely that’s what you saw?” Malum begged.

“You saw your opportunity to use your witchcraft and take revenge on him; that’s what I saw.” Fumed Joham. The other men nodded in agreement. Malum saw his Father’s eyes move down to look at the floor.

“This is crazy. I was trying to do something good. I couldn’t kill anybody. Father, tell them.” Malum looked hopefully towards his Father.

“Son, it’s best to turn yourself in, and we’ll figure this out.”

“Yes, summon the guards and get him out of here—total disgrace. I just knew something like this would happen with your freak of a son, Udai. It’s terrible that it cost a good worker like Lalit’s life.” Nalan boasted.

Malum’s Father leaned in and whispered in Malum’s ear. “Run!” he shook his head in confirmation. It surprised Malum to see the look of concern on his Father’s face. He knew what he was saying with his eyes. They’ll hang him in this town for this. So he took his advice, he would run.

———-

“I’ll turn myself in,” Malum said, and he walked to go outside.

“That makes things easier. We’ll try and get this resolved quickly; no doubt Lalit’s family will want him hung quickly.” Nalan was mainly saying to himself.

Malum made eye contact with the soldiers, and they weren’t moving too quickly.

“I’ve got something in my pocket; let me hand it to you.” Malum pulled the strange rock out and held it in his hand. The soldiers drew their swords on him. To his amazement, Malum instinctively summoned the element’s power and knocked over the soldiers.

Caught off guard, the other workers just looked on. He dashed off towards the hillside, where he knew the bridge was. He could see soldiers pushing through the commotion, trying to relocate him. Luckily, the bridge wasn’t very far.

The bridge overlooked a waterfall and the River that led to the coast. Malum came to the bridge railing and looked down into the precipice. Malum contemplated if he had time to get to the cargo rafts. He didn’t, for the soldiers were closing fast. With a leap of faith, Malum fell hard into the rushing water. Only someone desperate would have done so; the soldiers weren’t as frantic.

It isn’t likely that the soldiers were going to give chase. As far as they were concerned, Malum was dead.